In Rochester: Homeless Center gets a helping hand

ROCHESTER — Twenty-two volunteers from TE SubCom spent Sept. 11 at the Homeless Center for Strafford County for a "day of caring" — helping give the shelter a cleaning boost.

This was an in depth "spring" cleaning done in the fall.

About half the volunteers spent the day inside doing anything from cleaning the entire shelter from top to bottom, washing all the dishes, pots and pans, silverware ... you name it, if it was in the house it got washed. They also painted a few rooms and installed a couple of baby gates.

The other half worked outside turning the plot into a wonderfully landscaped area.

"They took a large space that hadn't been touched in years and made it beautiful again," said Homeless Center Executive Director Susan Ford. "I was in total shock at the amount of work they were able to complete in one day! This one area was once a flower garden around a giant flagpole that you couldn't even see into, it was so overgrown. It's now a beautiful garden again."

One volunteer, Ginger Hilo, brought flowers and bushes from her own gardens at home.

"This crew was a wonderful bunch of caring individuals that did a tremendous amount of work and transformed our building and grounds into a beautiful and welcoming home for the residents that will soon be staying here," Ford said.

The Shelter opens on the first Monday in October and is currently seeking volunteers who would like to work shelter shifts. This allows the residents to stay more hours during the day and out of the elements.

The shelter is also seeking donations to help them get up and running, the Rochester Grange is holding a "Jump Start the Shelter" event on Saturday, Sept. 29, from 8 a.m. to noon. Anyone wishing to help out, can drop off supplies there.

Visit www.homelesscenterforstraffco.org for a list of needed supplies.